Spoiler warning: this episode discusses the ending of Burn of the Everflame and The Kindred’s Curse Saga. Finish the book first, then come back 🔥

Summary: This week, New York Times bestselling author Penn Cole joins me to talk about Burn of the Everflame, the final book in The Kindred’s Curse Saga. We dig into what makes a finale both satisfying and nuanced, why a heroine who refuses violence in a world built on it becomes a lightning rod for criticism, and what “good” and “bad” even mean if those labels mean we can’t hold anyone accountable.

We get into:

• Whether “good” and “bad” labels serve us at all, and what redemption actually means
• How hard it is to break personal, familial, and social patterns
• Femininity, and how young men get pulled into the manosphere
• How romantasy opened fantasy up to adult women, after years of women’s fantasy being shelved as YA and taken less seriously
• Why “advocacy takes all kinds,” and why writing for people who disagree with you matters if you want your art to do good

Meet Penn Cole

Penn Cole is a fantasy romance author who has just concluded publishing her debut series, The Kindred’s Curse Saga. As many can attest, one of her favorite things to do when she's not writing is discussing theories with her readers—and maybe dropping a few hints to send them spiraling (I didn’t get the title “chaos demon” from them for nothing!).

Find Penn Cole

• Website: https://linkly.link/2rLH6
• Instagram, TikTok, and Threads @AuthorPennCole

Add it to your TBR:

When you shop through my book links, you're helping keep the lights on for my woman-owned, indie podcast AND you're also supporting independently owned bookstores! It's a win-win-win situation

The Kindred's Curse Saga

• Spark of the Everflame
• Glow of the Everflame: https://linkly.link/2rLMV
• Heat of the Everflame: https://linkly.link/2rLP6
• Burn of the Everflame: https://linkly.link/2rLOp

Want Femme & Furious Kindred's Curse Saga Playlist, with slay-by-slay deep dives into each book? Check it out here: https://linkly.link/2nl7l

On the Pod we may have mentioned...

• ACOTAR
• Penn Cole's favorite Romantasy, Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey: https://linkly.link/2z8xp

Book-to-screen adaptations gushed over:

• The Love Hypothesis Book: https://linkly.link/2jclB
• Femme & Furious Love Hypothesis Quickie: https://linkly.link/2z90k
• Femme & Furious Love Hypothesis movie take: https://linkly.link/2z918
• My Oxford Year (Book): https://linkly.link/2z91H
• People We Meet on Vacation Book: https://linkly.link/2z92f
• Femme & Furious People We Meet on Vacation Quickie: https://linkly.link/2z92q
• Femme & Furious People We Meet on Vacation Movie Quickie: https://linkly.link/2z933

If you love book to screen adaptations, Check out this Femme & Furious Playlist: https://linkly.link/2xyM9